Chapter 549 - 301: A Hot Commodity

The Old Cowboy, Abraham, sized up the Holy Knight for a moment with a scornful gaze before scoffing, smoke curling from his nostrils. "Looks like the great Holy Knight’s divine punishment isn’t over yet."

The Holy Knight ignored him, his gaze fixed on the Dragon Knight, who was sizing him up in turn:

"Baron Constantin, my Spiritual Essence tells me you have a mad heart."

Abraham said, "And I’d say I have a heart of gold. We’re all old-timers, so there’s no need to spout bullshit."

He stubbed out his finished Camel cigarette on the Golden Knight Bode’s golden helm, then blew a puff of smoke at the Holy Knight’s delicate, baby-like face. It was stopped by an invisible barrier. He ground the cigarette butt under his leather boot.

"I know none of you will choose to let Baron Constantin go, and neither will I. But if we just try to intimidate each other, we’ll end up in a stalemate."

"How about this."

The Old Cowboy then pulled a cigar from his coat and stuck it between his teeth. He looked at the Dragon Knight, who, after a moment’s hesitation, snapped his fingers and lit the cigar with his Dragon Flame.

The Old Cowboy took a harsh drag, pulling the smoke deep into his lungs, and said, "How about we have a fight? The winner gets to take the Dragon Knight."

The Golden Knight, Bode, shook his head. "There are restrictions beneath Traitor’s Cliff. A battle at the Golden Tier would cause the Mad Dragon to break its seal prematurely."

Abraham glanced at the Abyss behind him, where a colossal shadow drifted about like a great whale in the deep sea.

"So when exactly is our esteemed Golden Mage going to show up and clean up this mess?"

Bode replied, "He’s said to be debating the Dao with a Daoist from the East under the World Tree. But with the Golden Mage’s power, the fact that he isn’t here can only mean he doesn’t want to be."

"The Golden Mage sure has it made."

The Old Cowboy said around his cigar, "In that case, how about we compete using our Spiritual Pressure?"

The Holy Knight nodded. "That is an excellent idea. At least it won’t affect the other Low Tier Law Enforcers or the Mad Dragon in the Abyss."

As he spoke, the holy radiance emanating from him washed the last of the dark clouds from the sky. Even the blood moon, a symbol of calamity, instantly turned a brilliant white.

The Golden Knight, Bode, and Abraham simultaneously unleashed their own Spiritual Pressure. One was magnanimous and righteous, the other wild and heavy, and both collided with the holy radiance, forming a three-way stalemate.

The Dragon Knight stood at the center of it all, letting the resulting winds whip his hair and clothes into disarray.

Stella looked at Howard. "Vice President, if they keep fighting like this, I’m afraid someone is actually going to take Baron Constantin away."

With three Golden Tier masters publicly fighting over the Dragon Knight, Stella’s rational analysis concluded that the Vice President currently held no bargaining chips sufficient to sway them.

But to her surprise, the Vice President, who was always fiercely protective of his subordinates, looked completely unconcerned. "Let them fight," he said. "Everyone now knows that Baron Constantin is an agent of Westminster Bank. And since he’s a Westminster agent, no one can take him away."

Stella asked no more questions. Since the Vice President was so confident, he surely had an ace up his sleeve.

Sure enough, just as the Spiritual Pressures of the three Golden Tier masters reached a tense equilibrium, Abraham decided to play dirty. He roared, "What are you all standing around for? Someone capable, get in there and take Baron Constantin!"

Immediately, a Demon Hunter charged toward Baron Constantin, who was pinned in the center by the converging Spiritual Pressures.

At the same time, without needing any order from the Holy Knight, the Faith Knight Jiang Ge also charged toward Baron Constantin on his own initiative.

But then, both the Demon Hunter and the Faith Knight froze. Celestial Horse Yisur was already standing beside the Dragon Knight.

Abraham roared in fury, "That’s a dirty move! That Celestial Horse Yisur is only Silver Tier!"

A slight smile touched the corners of the Golden Knight Bode’s lips.

Celestial Horse Yisur, wearing white gloves and holding a white handkerchief, whispered to the Dragon Knight, "My apologies."

He then grabbed the Dragon Knight’s shoulder through the handkerchief, but his expression suddenly froze.

Baron Constantin dissolved into countless tiny papermen, which scattered on the wind.

This sudden development stunned not only Celestial Horse Yisur; the three Golden Tier masters also realized what had happened.

"A Daoist?"

Everyone present fixed their gazes on Paperman Lucy, who was perched on Isabella’s shoulder.

This time, Lucy had no chance to hide in her elder sister’s hair, because the terrifying Spiritual Pressure from the three Golden Tier masters was locked directly onto her. Pinned by this pressure, even Isabella, let alone Lucy, was frozen in place.

But before Lucy could explain, the three Golden Tier masters withdrew their Spiritual Pressure.

The Holy Knight shook his head. "It wasn’t her. Her Spiritual Power is nowhere near enough to use the Paperman Technique to snatch Baron Constantin from right under our noses."

The Old Cowboy mused, "A Daoist... I do seem to recall someone like that..."

A glint flashed in the Golden Knight Bode’s eyes. His voice was deep as he called out, "Since you’ve come, why not show yourself?"

Sure enough, as soon as Bode finished speaking, a voice drifted over from nearby. It was the voice of an old man.

"My apologies, you three. I’m reluctant to interrupt your dispute, but I believe Mr. Howard has already made it perfectly clear that Baron Constantin is now a containment agent for Westminster Bank."

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice. It was an old man dressed in Daoist robes, and he had a refined, sage-like air about him. However, the emblem printed on his robes was not a typical Daoist symbol like the yin-yang fish, but the insignia of Gold.

"Westminster wants in on this, too?" the Golden Knight Bode asked.

The newcomer was none other than the president of Westminster Bank, Hoover.